'Delhi Commonwealth Games will be safe'

Organisers of this year's Commonwealth Games in New Delhi have promised tight security during the October event after bomb blasts in Bangalore at the weekend raised safety concerns.

At least 10 people were wounded when two bombs exploded on Saturday outside a packed cricket stadium in Bangalore, increasing fears about further terrorist attacks in the country.

Police defused three bombs near the stadium on Sunday, forcing the two remaining matches in the popular Indian Premier League to be shifted to Mumbai due to security concerns.

"The security arrangements for the Commonwealth Games are constantly being monitored by the organising committee in tandem with the Ministry of Home Affairs and Delhi Police," organising committee chairman Suresh Kalmadi said in a statement on Monday.

"We are sure we will have a safe and secure games and that the athletes will be able to perform, assured that they would be given the best protection," he added.

New Delhi is preparing to host more than 100,000 foreign visitors during the October 3-14 event and the Indian capital hopes to use the games to show itself off as a truly global city.

"The Commonwealth Games Federation has been advised by its international security consultant that India is making the best security arrangements for the Games," Kalmadi said.

India formed a security liaison group due to heightened safety fears over travelling to New Delhi for the Games.

Gunmen ambushed the Sri Lanka cricket team bus in Lahore, Pakistan, last year, raising concerns that sport could become a target in the region.

England pulled out of the world badminton championships in India last year citing a "specific terror threat." However, the tournament went ahead smoothly and the British sports minister later expressed regret to his Indian counterpart.

Australia did not send their Davis Cup team to India last year following the Mumbai attacks in November 2008 that killed 166 people and which were blamed on the Pakistan-based terrorist group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LET).